Chapter 138: Lighting a Lard Lamp
Feeling a little embarrassed by her straightforward compliment, Xie Qiujin returned to her previous gentle and reserved self.
She added, "We also need to buy some needles and thread and oil lamps. I remember you said that the winter in Lingnan is not cold, so we can use reed fluff as the filling."
Needless to say, needlework is essential for sewing bedding and clothes. But what about this oil lamp? Could it be that she planned to finish it overnight?
Sang Yu frowned slightly: "Mom, you can buy needles and oil lamps, but you have to promise me one thing first."
"What is it?"
"You are not allowed to sew bedding and clothes by lighting oil lamps at night."
The oil lamps of that time were similar to candles in later generations, and the light they emitted was very weak.
If you do such delicate work as sewing clothes under this kind of brightness for a long time, your eyes will probably be damaged sooner or later.
Sang Yu didn't want her mother to damage her eyes in order to catch up with the work.
"Can……"
Xie Qiujin wanted to say a few more words, but Old Lady Shi, who had been silent, spoke up: "Buy some more needles and thread so I can join in the embroidery. Your father used to praise your embroidery every day when he was alive."
As a lady of noble family, you may not be good at music, chess, calligraphy, or painting, and you may not be able to write poetry or songs, but you must be able to embroider.
Not to mention the distant past, even the wedding dress I wore when I got married had to be sewn a few stitches by hand.
Old Mrs. Shi's embroidery skills were very exquisite. When her husband was still alive, he loved wearing the clothes she made.
It's just that I've grown older and don't like to move, and my eyesight isn't very good, so I've gradually stopped.
Although she can't do delicate embroidery, she can still sew a simple quilt. How can she let her daughter-in-law do the work alone?
"Mom, I can handle it. You should take a rest." Xie Qiujin knew that her mother-in-law's eyesight was not very good and she didn't want her to work too hard.
"It's settled. Buy two pairs." Old Mrs. Shi didn't argue with her at all and made the decision directly.
Soon, two sets of needlework and two porcelain oil lamps appeared in the bamboo basket behind Sang Yongjing.
After carefully placing the porcelain oil lamp in the basket and securing it, Sang Yu brushed off the nonexistent dust from her hands and said, "When we get home, I'll put one in Grandma's room and the other in Big Brother's room."
"Huh? Isn't it for mother? I don't need the lamp." Sang Xingjia didn't expect that there would be an oil lamp that belonged to him, so he quickly waved his hand to refuse.
He had sharp ears and eyes, and even when he got up at night he could see the road clearly by the moonlight, and there was no need for an oil lamp.
Sang Yu's next question stumped him: "Are you not going to study for the imperial examination?"
"..." After a moment of silence, Sang Xingjia shook his head slightly, "Family life hasn't settled down yet, so let's not think about it for now."
Studying, like practicing martial arts, has never been something that poor people can dream of. Brushes, ink, paper, inkstone, books, and famous teachers all cost money.
The dream of a noble son coming from a poor family is nothing but an illusory dream that the upper class has for ordinary people. If you really look into those noble sons from poor families, you will find that they have some connection with the upper class.
Given their family's current situation, it's a bit too far-fetched to think about studying hard and gaining a good academic record.
"Then put it in parents' room. It happens that we still have the lard from last time, so we can use it as lamp oil." Sang Yu didn't persuade him any more and changed the subject to talk about lamp oil.
Previously, Sang Yongjing brought back nearly 15 pounds of pork belly from the Sang Family Restaurant. She cut off the fat part and refined it into snow-white lard.
I originally wanted to use it for cooking, but I found that the lard from uncastrated pigs naturally has an indelible fishy smell.
If used for cooking, the smell will be more pungent after being heated over high heat.
Sang Yu didn't believe it at first, so she added some pungent ingredients like peppercorns, onions and garlic to stir-fry, but it still couldn't be suppressed.
When she learned from Sang Yongjing that dishes cooked with lard tasted like this and that it was normal, she finally gave up and threw the jar of snow-white, oily lard aside, never to use it again.
Now it can be used as lamp oil, so there is no waste at all.
I bought some bottles and jars, as well as various practical small items such as ladles and scissors, and most of my money was spent.
Sang Yu was just about to buy something else when her eyes inadvertently swept over the family and she found that her grandmother and younger brother both looked a little tired.
He paused and started talking, "You must be tired after walking for so long. Let's go to Area A and find a place to sit down and have something to eat."
There are a variety of food sold in Area A, some are sold on the street, and some are sold with tables and chairs set up.
The prices are much lower than those in restaurants, and it can also provide a place for pedestrians to rest, so the business is quite prosperous.
What's more... she can also do market research, which is like killing three birds with one stone.
As soon as I stepped into Area A, I heard the hawking sounds and the rising white smoke was very eye-catching. Those were the stalls selling buns and noodle soup.
"Wow! It's so lively." Sang Xinghao, who was holding Sang Yu's hand, exclaimed softly.
From his perspective, he could only see people's parts below the chest, and figures quickly passed by him.
"Hey, shall I pick you up and let you watch? It will be more lively." Sang Yu said as she was about to pick him up, but he dodged in time.
"Sister! You forgot again... Never mind, big brother, just hold me."
Sang Xinghao wanted to bring out his argument about intimacy between men and women, but then he remembered that it hadn't worked the last time he said it. So he simply turned to Sang Xingjia next to him and opened his arms for a hug.
Sang Xingjia held his butt with one hand and protected the back of his head with the other, and picked him up steadily.
Sang Xinghao, who had suddenly risen a lot, was not nervous at all. He leaned forward to look and saw that the street was bustling with people moving back and forth, jostling each other.
He also saw several boys and girls who were slightly younger than him sitting directly on their father's shoulders, waving their arms as if they were riding a war horse.
He didn't have any envious thoughts. He just took a look and then struggled to get down. His body twisted like a live fish. Sang Xingjia almost couldn't hold him, so he quickly increased his strength and slowly put him down.
"Why are you making a fuss about getting down after just watching for a while?" Sang Xingjia asked.
"Those being held are all young children. I'm grown up and can't be held." Sang Xinghao answered in a low voice.
As soon as these words were spoken, the people nearby burst into laughter. Even Sang Xingjia, who originally thought that he was uncomfortable because of the way he was hugging him, smiled and shook his head.
"Hao'er, aren't you also a child? There's no reason why you can't hold me."
"I'm not! I've grown up." Sang Xinghao was resolute.
Sang Yu rubbed his little head and comforted him, "Okay, okay, you are not. If you want to eat anything, tell me and I will take you there."
"I want to eat wontons."
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